Large Fishing Vessel Inspection Regulations (C.R.C., c. 1435)

Life Saving Equipment

• 24 (1) A seine skiff shall not be considered as being life saving equipment unless it is ordinarily used in a vessel’s fishing operations.

• (2) Where the weight of a lifeboat, boat, dory or skiff exceeds 1 525 kg, davits shall be substituted for cranes.

• (3) Every fishing vessel not more than 33.5 m in length shall carry

  • (a) one approved lifejacket for each person on board the vessel;

  • (a.1) one approved immersion suit for each member of the complement if the vessel makes voyages other than home-trade voyages, Class IV and minor waters voyages, Class II;

  • (b) one approved lifebuoy fitted with 27 m of line;

  • (c) one approved lifebuoy fitted with a self-igniting light that cannot be extinguished by water;

  • (d) in the case of a vessel the keel of which was laid on or after January 6, 1965, the equipment described in one of the following subparagraphs:

    • (i) one or more boats or dories of sufficient capacity to accommodate all persons on board, so stowed under approved single arm crane-type davits that they can readily be placed in the water on either side of the vessel, and life rafts of sufficient capacity to accommodate,

      • (A) if the vessel makes voyages other than inland voyages and goes beyond the limits of home-trade Class III voyages, 75 per cent of the persons on board, or

      • (B) if the vessel makes voyages other than voyages described in clause (A), half the number of persons on board,

    • (ii) one or more boats or dories on each side of the vessel, of sufficient capacity to accommodate all persons on board, stowed under oridinary davits or approved single arm crane-type davits, and life rafts of sufficient capacity to accommodate,

      • (A) if the vessel makes voyages other than inland voyages and goes beyond the limits of home-trade Class III voyages, 75 per cent of the persons on board, or

      • (B) if the vessel makes voyages other than voyages described in clause (A), half the number of persons on board,

    • (iii) a boat, dory or seine skiff of sufficient capacity to accommodate at least half the number of persons on board, and in no case less than four persons, stowed under an approved single arm crane-type davit or a set of ordinary davits or a boom in the case of seine skiffs, and at least one life raft of sufficient capacity to accommodate all persons on board,

    • (iv) a boat, dory or seine skiff not less than 5.5 m in length and capable of being placed in the water on either side of the vessel by means of an approved single arm crane-type davit or a boom in the case of a seine skiff, and

      • (A) where the boat, dory or seine skiff is capable of accommodating at least half the number of persons on board there shall also be carried one or more life rafts of sufficient capacity to accommodate all persons on board, or

      • (B) where the boat, dory or seine skiff is not capable of accommodating at least half the number of persons on board, there shall also be carried a life raft that together with the boat, dory or seine skiff will accommodate 150 per cent of the total number of persons on board, or

    • (v) a Class 1 lifeboat not less than 4.3 m in length stowed under ordinary davits or an approved single arm crane-type davit and two equal-sized life rafts which lifeboat and life rafts collectively shall be capable of accommodating double the total number of persons on board; and

  • (e) subject to subsection (4), in the case of a vessel the keel of which was laid before September 8, 1966, the equipment described in paragraph (d) or in one of the following subparagraphs:

    • (i) one or more approved Class 1 lifeboats of sufficient capacity to accommodate all persons on board the vessel, so stowed that they can be readily placed in the water on either side of the vessel,

    • (ii) one or more approved lifeboats on each side of the vessel, of sufficient capacity to accommodate all persons on board, of which one lifeboat may be a Class 2 lifeboat, and the remainder shall be Class 1,

    • (iii) one or more dories of sufficient capacity to accommodate all persons on board the vessel, so stowed that they can be readily placed in the water on either side of the vessel, or

    • (iv) one or more dories, on each side of the vessel, of sufficient capacity to accommodate all persons on board.

• (4) Every vessel referred to in paragraph (3)(e) shall comply with the requirements of paragraph (3)(d) or carry in addition to the equipment described in paragraph (3)(e) one or more life rafts of sufficient capacity to accommodate

  • (a) if the vessel makes voyages other than inland voyages and goes beyond the limits of home-trade Class III voyages, 75 per cent of the persons on board; or

  • (b) if the vessel makes voyages other than voyages described in paragraph (a), half the number of persons on board.

• (5) Every fishing vessel more than 33.5 m and not more than 44.2 m in length shall carry

  • (a) one approved lifejacket for each person on board the vessel;

  • (a.1) one approved immersion suit for each member of the complement if the vessel makes voyages other than home-trade voyages, Class IV and minor waters voyages, Class II;

  • (b) two approved lifebuoys each fitted with 27 m of line;

  • (c) two approved lifebuoys each fitted with a self-igniting light that cannot be extinguished by water; and

  • (d) in the case of a vessel the keel of which was laid on or after January 6, 1965, the equipment described in one of the following subparagraphs:

    • (i) one or more approved lifeboats on each side of the vessel of sufficient capacity to accommodate all persons on board, of which one lifeboat may be a Class 2 lifeboat and the remainder shall be Class 1 and the lifeboats shall be stowed under separate ordinary davits or approved single arm crane-type davits and, if the vessel makes voyages other than inland voyages and goes beyond the limits of home-trade Class III voyages, life rafts of sufficient capacity to accommodate 75 per cent of the persons on board,

    • (ii) one or more approved Class 1 lifeboats of sufficient capacity to accommodate all persons on board, so stowed under approved single arm crane-type davits that they can readily be placed in the water on either side of the vessel, and approved life rafts of sufficient capacity to accommodate all persons on board,

    • (iii) a Class 1 lifeboat not less than 4.3 m in length stowed under ordinary davits or an approved single arm crane-type davit and two equal-sized life rafts which lifeboat and rafts collectively shall be of sufficient capacity to accommodate double the total number of persons on board,

    • (iv) dories of sufficient capacity to accommodate all persons on board, so stowed under ordinary davits or approved single arm crane-type davits that they can readily be placed in the water, and life rafts of sufficient capacity to accommodate all persons on board, or

    • (v) a boat, dory or seine skiff not less than 5.5 m in length, capable of being placed in the water on either side of the vessel by means of an approved single arm crane-type davit or a boom in the case of a seine skiff, and at least two life rafts of equal size each of sufficient capacity to accommodate all persons on board; and

  • (e) in the case of a vessel the keel of which was laid before January 6, 1965, the equipment described in one of the following subparagraphs:

    • (i) one or more approved lifeboats on each side of the vessel of sufficient capacity to accommodate all persons on board, of which one lifeboat may be a Class 2 lifeboat and the remainder shall be Class 1,

    • (ii) one or more approved Class 1 lifeboats of sufficient capacity to accommodate all persons on board the vessel, so stowed that they can be readily placed in the water on either side of the vessel, and in addition, sufficient boats, dories, skiffs or approved life rafts to accommodate all persons on board the vessel, or

    • (iii) dories of sufficient capacity to accommodate all persons on board the vessel, together with life rafts of sufficient capacity to accommodate all persons on board.

• (6) Every vessel

  • (a) equipped in accordance with subparagraph (5)(e)(i) shall, if the vessel makes voyages other than inland voyages and goes beyond the limit of home-trade Class III voyages, carry life rafts of sufficient capacity to accommodate 75 per cent of the persons on board; and

  • (b) equipped in accordance with subparagraph (5)(e)(ii) shall include in its equipment approved life rafts of sufficient capacity to accommodate all persons on board.

• (7) Every fishing vessel more than 44.2 m in length shall carry

  • (a) one approved lifejacket for each person on board the vessel;

  • (a.1) one approved immersion suit for each member of the complement if the vessel makes voyages other than home-trade voyages, Class IV and minor waters voyages, Class II;

  • (b) two approved lifebuoys each fitted with 27 m of line;

  • (c) two approved lifebuoys each fitted with a self-igniting light that cannot be extinguished by water; and

  • (d) the equipment described in one of the following subparagraphs:

    • (i) one or more approved lifeboats on each side of the vessel, of sufficient capacity to accommodate all persons on board, of which one lifeboat may be a Class 2 lifeboat and the remainder shall be Class 1 and such lifeboats shall be stowed under separate ordinary davits or approved single arm crane-type davits, and, if the vessel makes voyages other than inland voyages and goes beyond the limits of home-trade Class III voyages, life rafts of sufficient capacity to accommodate 75 per cent of the persons on board,

    • (ii) a Class 1 lifeboat not less than 4.3 m in length stowed under ordinary davits or an approved single arm crane-type davit and two life rafts of equal size which lifeboat and rafts collectively shall be capable of accommodating double the total number of persons on board, or

    • (iii) on each side of the vessel, one or more boats, dories or seine skiffs which shall

      • (A) collectively be capable of accommodating all persons on board,

      • (B) each be not less than 5.5 m in length, and

      • (C) each be stowed under separate ordinary davits or approved single arm crane-type davits or a boom in the case of seine skiffs,

      and at least two life rafts of equal size each capable of accommodating half of all persons on board.

• (8) The number of persons that one lifeboat, boat, dory, skiff or life raft shall be deemed capable of carrying is

  • (a) in the case of an approved lifeboat, boat or life raft, the number prescribed for that equipment in the Life Saving Equipment Regulations;

  • (b) in the case of a seine skiff of normal construction built in accordance with plans accepted by the Board and fitted with internal buoyance appliances of 0.0283 m³ standard unit of capacity per person, the number determined in accordance with the following formula:

    N = (L × B × D) / 0.566

    where

    N =

    number of persons,

    L =

    overall length in metres,

    B =

    maximum breadth in metres, at level of gunwale, to outside of plank, and

    D =

    the least vertical distance in metres measured from the top of the keel to the top of the gunwale or from the top of the keel to the lowest point of the transom, whichever is the smaller dimension;

  • (c) in the case of a seine skiff of heavy construction that is built in accordance with plans accepted by the Board and is not fitted with internal buoyancy appliances, the number assigned to it by the Board;

  • (d) in the case of a dory, the length of which is

    • (i) 3.7 m, three persons,

    • (ii) 4.3 m, four persons,

    • (iii) 4.6 m, four persons,

    • (iv) 4.9 m, five persons,

    • (v) 5.2 m, five persons,

    • (vi) 5.5 m, six persons,

    • (vii) 5.8 m, six persons; and

  • (e) in the case of a boat or skiff other than a boat or skiff described in paragraph (a), (b) or (c), the number determined in accordance with the following formula:

    N = (L × B × D) / 0.75

    where

    N =

    number of persons,

    L =

    overall length in metres,

    B =

    maximum breadth in metres, at level of gunwale, to outside of plank, and

    D =

    the least vertical distance in metres measured from the top of the keel to the top of the gunwale or from the top of the keel to the lowest point of the transom, whichever is the smaller dimension.

• (9) Subject to subsection (10), there shall be stowed in each lifeboat, boat, dory or skiff required by this section

  • (a) one full bank of oars and a complete set of rowlocks or thole pins;

  • (b) where the vessel operates in salt water, one suitable container holding at least 1 L of fresh water for each person the lifeboat, boat, dory or skiff is considered capable of carrying;

  • (c) one watertight can containing 12 approved self-igniting red flares;

  • (d) one bucket and one bailer;

  • (e) two sheath knives or hatchets, except that only one sheath knife or hatchet is required for a dory;

  • (f) one boat hook or fishing gaff;

  • (g) one storm lantern with sufficient oil to burn for at least 7 hours and a watertight can of matches;

  • (h) one painter, attached to the bow;

  • (i) one dory compass; and

  • (j) one sea anchor, oil bag and 4.5 L can of vegetable oil except that such equipment is not required for a dory.

• (10) Where a boat, dory or skiff is used in the fishing operations of a vessel, the equipment prescribed by subsection (9) may be carried in a place on the vessel where it is readily available for use in an emergency in lieu of being carried on the boat, dory or skiff.

• (11) Except as otherwise specified in Schedule VII, every life raft of every vessel making foreign, home-trade Class I or home-trade Class II voyages shall carry all the equipment set out in items 1 to 24 of that Schedule, which equipment shall be known as Class A equipment.

• (12) Except as otherwise specified in Schedule VII, every life raft of every vessel making home-trade Class III, inland waters Class I, inland waters Class II or minor waters Class I voyages shall carry all the equipment set out in items 1 to 13 of that Schedule, which equipment shall be known as Class B equipment.

• (13) Every life raft of every vessel making voyages other than those referred to in subsections (11) and (12) shall carry a knife, two paddles and a heaving line with a quoit.

• (14) The weight of each seine skiff carried on board a fishing vessel shall be both established and certified to the satisfaction of an inspector who shall then cause the following details to be marked on the stem or sheer strake thereof, in permanent characters, clearly visible and as near as possible to 75 mm in height:

  • (a) the operating weight of the skiff measured in tons, when it is fully equipped with fuel and its fresh water tanks are full;

  • (b) the date on which the measurement is taken; and

  • (c) the inspector’s initials.

• (15) Every seine skiff and dory used as life saving equipment on board a fishing vessel shall be marked with retroreflective tape in the manner required by Schedule V to the Life Saving Equipment Regulations as illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 of Schedule XI.